South Korea Rejects Microsoft’s Appeal in Antitrust Case
The Korean Fair Trade Commission has officially announced its decision to dismiss Microsoft’s appeal regarding the ruling in the antitrust lawsuit within this Asian country.
According to the ruling, Microsoft is required to pay a fine of up to $34 million.
In February, the Korean Fair Trade Commission ruled that Microsoft had excessively abused its dominance in the South Korean market to “tie” certain software to the Windows operating system.
As per this ruling, Microsoft must provide two different versions of Windows starting from August 24, including one version without Windows Media Player and Windows Messenger, and another version that includes links to other websites allowing users to download similar software from other companies.
However, Microsoft spokesperson Matt Pilla stated that Microsoft has not yet seen the dismissal decision and therefore has no official comment on this matter.
In March, Microsoft filed an appeal with the Commission and the Supreme Court of Seoul to overturn this ruling. The Seoul court has yet to make any specific decision. It remains unclear whether the court’s decision will affect the Commission’s ruling.
The Fair Trade Commission officially investigated Microsoft after the South Korean internet service provider Daum Communications filed a lawsuit in 2001. Microsoft reached a settlement with this company in November 2005, incurring costs of up to $30 million.
Hoàng Dũng
